The Bengali Mystic

A name in Bengal that marked a change in spirituality and religion, some say that Ramakrishna Paramhansa indeed had spiritual powers. He added a different point of view toward religion and worship.

Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa; image source: Wikiquote

Ramakrishna Paramhansa was the fourth child of Khudiram Chatterjee and Chandramani Devi. They lived in a village named Kamarpukur in West Bengal, India. It is said that his parents saw God in their dreams before his birth, which worried them. Ramakrishna was born on 18 February 1836.

He was called Gadadhar when he was a child, and even when he grew up, people used to call him by this name lovingly. As he matured, Gadadhar exuded a sense of positivity and power. He was handsome and people praised him for his remarkable memory and wisdom. Even though he was smart he hated school. However, he always liked to read and listen about gods, goddesses, and religions. Painting and singing were also some of his skills.

One day when Gadadhar was walking across a field, he saw a flock of beautiful white cranes flying high up in the sky. The birds were so beautiful that Gadadhar kept on seeing them. He became so engrossed in watching them that he went into a trance and fell unconscious on the ground. At that time, some people passing by saw him fall down at that time. They quickly picked him up and took him to his home. When asked what had happened, he answered that when he saw those beautiful white swans flying, he imagined himself flying along with them, and soon fell unconscious. He was small then and did not know what had just happened.

As he grew a little older, the urge to learn about God and listen to songs of God became more and more profound. He used to help the sages and saints in their daily work, sing with them and enjoy spending time with them.

One more incident made people believe that his attachment to God is unique. The Mahashivratri festival was around the corner, and the people in the village planned for a drama on Lord Shiva's story. The role of Lord Shiva was played by a young boy. On Mahashivratri day, the boy selected for the enactment fell ill, but the drama had to be staged. Upon thinking, the villagers decided that Gadadhar should play the role of Lord Shiva. They approached him and told him what had happened; after listening to them, Gadadhar agreed. All the spectators were stunned when Gadadhar went to the stage dressed as Lord Shiva. Their mouth remained open in awe!! He looked just like the lord himself, the replica. Gadadhar became so engrossed in the role that he did not even bother about who was watching him. While playing the role, he once again went into trance and fell unconscious. This incident took place when he was seven years old.

When he was seventeen, he was given the responsibility of being a priest in the famous Dakshineshwar Temple in present Kolkata. There he used to worship, sing hymns, meditate, and pray.  There he worshipped Goddess Kali and Lord Krishna. Whenever he worshipped Goddess Kali, he found a strong sense of belonging to the Goddess. He used to address her as his mother. As days passed, he became more and more immersed in her worship. He got restless. Now, he wanted to perceive mother kali as a person in front of him. When he was immersed in his prayer, tears used to roll down his cheeks. Every day he asked Mother Kali when can he perceive her. He felt that Mother Kali was purposefully doing this and that she wanted to test him on how far can he go with his worship and meditation. He grew more and more restless with innumerable questions in his mind.

One day like every other day, he was worshipping Goddess Kali. Suddenly, he became so restless that he thought, today he will kill himself by slitting his head with a sword, he thought, 'What is the use of worshipping and meditating, if Goddess Kali does not want to see me? It is easier to die." Just as he took the sword to his throat, he saw the real Goddess Kali in the idol before him. He was spellbound, and could not even move to see her.

After this incident, his urge of seeing Goddess Kali became more strong. He used to talk to her day and night. For him, the vision of Goddess kali was the only thing that he wished for. The connection of Ramakrishna, or Gadadhar as he was called, with God became stronger and more unique. He could sit in meditation for hours to seek darshan of Goddess Kali.

In this way, Ramakrishna became popular, and he continued to seek for darshan of his mother, Goddess Kali, by worshipping and meditating for long hours. People used to love to hear him preach about God and his powers. According to him, all religions teach different methods to pray and attain the absolute God. All the gods are the same, and it's the sole power. Just that they have different names in which people like to pray.